Belts
- Thread starter RayMcD
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bertsmobile1
Lawn Royalty
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Most after market suppliers do OEM spec belts
Gates will always be the best belt which is why they are the most expensive apart from marque branded belts.
The Stens belts I have been using I am going off as some of the belts sourced from India have not worn well.
Pix do a range of OEM spec belts as do Sunbelt
Weather they do one for your mower I have no idea
Avoid any belt on ebay / Amazon listed as "unbranded " regardless of weather they claim it is OEM or not
A good belt will always have a brand name on it and a method of batch identification
Gates will always be the best belt which is why they are the most expensive apart from marque branded belts.
The Stens belts I have been using I am going off as some of the belts sourced from India have not worn well.
Pix do a range of OEM spec belts as do Sunbelt
Weather they do one for your mower I have no idea
Avoid any belt on ebay / Amazon listed as "unbranded " regardless of weather they claim it is OEM or not
A good belt will always have a brand name on it and a method of batch identification
- Joined
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I am a Sunbelt Outdoors dealer but my purchases this year is near nil because of problems with A&I. They went from selling me over $4,000 in parts each year to just $421 this year.
If Sunbelt Outdoors hasn't improved since the Spring of 2021 they are still shipping OEM spec'd belts that are usually shorter than the stated specs. Even their even inch were short. I have had nothing but problems with belts from A&I formerly Sunbelt Outdoors Products for the last several years. It got so bad that back in 2019 I had to throw out over $1,000 [cost] in belts that were one to two inches short. A&I promised me that they had resolved the problem this Spring so I ordered two JD spec'd belts both came in over an inch short. I just can't trust them any more to provide the correct sized belts.
Even ordering from Stens I have gotten belts that were over an inch too long and had to return them.Then had to wait 3 months to get a credit for them.
Because of these problems and I not having the time to waste fighting to get wrong belt sizes replace everytime I turn around I have gone back to OEM provided belts. At least least I don't waste time trying to put on belts that are the wrong sizes.
I even had to buy a 200 inch v-belt measuring tool to prove that I was right about the problem with the belts.
If Sunbelt Outdoors hasn't improved since the Spring of 2021 they are still shipping OEM spec'd belts that are usually shorter than the stated specs. Even their even inch were short. I have had nothing but problems with belts from A&I formerly Sunbelt Outdoors Products for the last several years. It got so bad that back in 2019 I had to throw out over $1,000 [cost] in belts that were one to two inches short. A&I promised me that they had resolved the problem this Spring so I ordered two JD spec'd belts both came in over an inch short. I just can't trust them any more to provide the correct sized belts.
Even ordering from Stens I have gotten belts that were over an inch too long and had to return them.Then had to wait 3 months to get a credit for them.
Because of these problems and I not having the time to waste fighting to get wrong belt sizes replace everytime I turn around I have gone back to OEM provided belts. At least least I don't waste time trying to put on belts that are the wrong sizes.
I even had to buy a 200 inch v-belt measuring tool to prove that I was right about the problem with the belts.
bkeller500
Well-Known Member
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take a look at https://www.vbelts4less.com and. https://www.vbeltsupply.com
I have used both and their belts were great replacements for factory belts and much less expensive.
I have used both and their belts were great replacements for factory belts and much less expensive.
Sir, thanks for the reply, FYI, neither of the BOBCAT part#'s cross on either of these sites..
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It does usually help when we know what the equipment numbers so we look up the part numbers as some of have already cross these before or can the actual sizes of the belts. Sometime these equipment will actually give us the belt sizes but many do try to hide the sizes.
Gentlemen, I believe I have identified the size of PN# 4169566 - BELT-48" CUTTERDECK → B 5/8"Width - 148.35" Length
What I seek is the same info for PN# 4168621 BELT-TRANSAXL
What I seek is the same info for PN# 4168621 BELT-TRANSAXL
Ya know, when the sucker cost $100+ you would like it to fit. Thanks for the info..r
Mower King
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IMO.......O.E.M. belts is the only way to go! They might cost more but....they FIT as designed and LAST a lot longer!
That's all we have used for decades, and almost never have a problem with them!
That's one of the many things I like about the Dealership I work at.... we use almost all O.E.M. belts and parts, plus we use Kohler oil in Kohlers, Kawasaki oil in Kawasaki, B&S oil in Briggs & Stratton, everything seems to work smoother with less problems that way and....customers see this and know you're not cutting corners!
That's all we have used for decades, and almost never have a problem with them!
That's one of the many things I like about the Dealership I work at.... we use almost all O.E.M. belts and parts, plus we use Kohler oil in Kohlers, Kawasaki oil in Kawasaki, B&S oil in Briggs & Stratton, everything seems to work smoother with less problems that way and....customers see this and know you're not cutting corners!
bertsmobile1
Lawn Royalty
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It is horses for courses
Down here most of the brand franchise distribution is done by a cartel who pay way too much for the franchise rights then inflate the price of some parts and belts in particular.
Nothing unusual to find MTD belts for over $ 200 ( Aus ) which is around $ 150 US +/-
Thus the only maker branded belts I buy are JD ones because JD mowers are part of JD farm equipment thus the tiny amount of mower sales piggy back on million dollar farm equipment.
JD parts are cheaper than aftermarket parts and belts are about the same price retail as my wholesale cost from aftermarket distributors .
I was hoping that the upsurge in online platforms would have cause a rethink but all that happened is the local mafia put their prices up to cover the reduced turnover.
I am trying to get a Gates wholesale account but of course that means buying them in scanes from 10 to 30 belts in each size .
One of my suppliers rebadges Gates belts and they are by far the best belts I have ever fitted.
The down side is RGS only do it for popular sizes so there are a lot of belts they don't carry .
The other thing most repairers overlook is pulleys do wear and a worn rear drive pulley can chop up to 2" off the effective length so you need to go for a shorter belts to compensate for wear.
Working out which belt is right for an old mower is the difference between a technician & a backyard parts swapper.
I got some very good customers because the MTD agent tried to hit them up for $ 600 because the stack pulley was worn so their mower deck only worked at the top & bottom settings.
Solution was a belt 1.25" shorter and 5 years on the mower is still working quite fine.
But you can not do this if you don't have the stock thus I keep over 200 different sized belts , many of them bought superceeded for peanuts .
Downside is they have to be kept flat in sealed boxes to prevent them deteriorating .
Hanging a belt on a peg where it gets exposed to sunlight can have it go off in less than a year .
Down here most of the brand franchise distribution is done by a cartel who pay way too much for the franchise rights then inflate the price of some parts and belts in particular.
Nothing unusual to find MTD belts for over $ 200 ( Aus ) which is around $ 150 US +/-
Thus the only maker branded belts I buy are JD ones because JD mowers are part of JD farm equipment thus the tiny amount of mower sales piggy back on million dollar farm equipment.
JD parts are cheaper than aftermarket parts and belts are about the same price retail as my wholesale cost from aftermarket distributors .
I was hoping that the upsurge in online platforms would have cause a rethink but all that happened is the local mafia put their prices up to cover the reduced turnover.
I am trying to get a Gates wholesale account but of course that means buying them in scanes from 10 to 30 belts in each size .
One of my suppliers rebadges Gates belts and they are by far the best belts I have ever fitted.
The down side is RGS only do it for popular sizes so there are a lot of belts they don't carry .
The other thing most repairers overlook is pulleys do wear and a worn rear drive pulley can chop up to 2" off the effective length so you need to go for a shorter belts to compensate for wear.
Working out which belt is right for an old mower is the difference between a technician & a backyard parts swapper.
I got some very good customers because the MTD agent tried to hit them up for $ 600 because the stack pulley was worn so their mower deck only worked at the top & bottom settings.
Solution was a belt 1.25" shorter and 5 years on the mower is still working quite fine.
But you can not do this if you don't have the stock thus I keep over 200 different sized belts , many of them bought superceeded for peanuts .
Downside is they have to be kept flat in sealed boxes to prevent them deteriorating .
Hanging a belt on a peg where it gets exposed to sunlight can have it go off in less than a year .